Let Me Hear You
by TUMe
Summary: Communication was never easy for Sasuke and Naruto. Even more so when Naruto couldn't talk and Sasuke couldn't see. AU. SasuNaru
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't have anything to do with Naruto characters or its production.

Warning: Yaoi and bad language. Alternate universe.

**Prologue: A World of Silent and Darkness**

Supposed today, he had a lecture to attend to but his 'Vector Mathematic Applications' lecturer was absent again.

Really, Professor Hatake Kakashi needed to take his work more seriously. Today was his fourth absent this week. The Mathematic Department staff said Professor Hatake was sick.

Ceh, that lying jerk. Naruto knew better. That lazy bastard was definitely not sick. Either he was engrossed with his porn books and forgot the time or he was so engrossed in his porn books and forgot the time. It was not a real surprise for Naruto to have known this because that lecturer of his was his grandpa's greatest fan.

Although it was very embarrassing to admit this, Naruto's grandpa was the author of said porn books. He couldn't keep track on how many times Professor Hatake had came to their house to check on books update – that man was a bit obsessed, really.

Well, never mind. As long as he could have passed the course and managed to graduate from University of Fire, he didn't really mind about those absents and the absentee. After all, he was able to gain free time from no lecture, so he could sit at the bench in the park and watched people. Naruto liked to observe people – he could learn a lot from their body language. He was one of the few people who was capable of reading people emotion from their body language.

It was like his fifth sense. Maybe because he couldn't hear that he was given this specialty.

Naruto was born a normal child but because of that one accident – that also took his parents' life – he became deaf.

Not many people knew about this. One, because he was such an energetic and naughty boy who liked to play prank on unsuspecting people, he looked so normal. Two, because he didn't really have friends to tell. As far as he remembered, the only friend he had ever had was his elementary teacher, Iruka-sensei and his sketch book.

Yup, sketch book. Naruto liked to draw – he liked to capture people emotion in all his drawings. When time like these came (no lecture day) he would sit in the park and draw. Today, he was sketching three kids playing with their Frisbee. The kids were funny. One of them – who acted as their leader – wore a muffler around his neck although it was a fairly warm day today. The second boy wore spectacle and had snot running out of his nose constantly. The last of the group was a girl with her hair made into two buns.

The muffler boy was shouting instructions at the snot-boy to stand guard at a distance opposite him. Giving all his energy into that throw, as expected, the Frisbee flew high, passed through the snot-boy to come close to a nearby bench. This situation usually didn't raise any alarm but since there was a man sitting on the bench, the situation had became a little bit dangerous.

From what Naruto could see, the man didn't make any sign to move.

_Shit!_

Naruto looked at the kids for a second to see if they were gonna catch the Frisbee before it hit the black-haired guy.

They were frozen in shock – not a likely reaction to stop the Frisbee.

Since Naruto couldn't shout for the man to dunk, he ran towards the man as fast as he could and pushed him down on the bench just before the Frisbee could have hit the black-haired man's head.

In that collision, two pairs of lips met. Both parties quickly separated their bodies from each other. Naruto was embarrassed but he determined to ignore it.

\What do you think you are doing? Why didn't you dodge that?\

Naruto was frantically made some hand signals. In his frantic, he forgot that most people didn't understand them (hand signals).

"What do you think you are doing?!" The man hissed through his teeth, angry that he was pushed down suddenly by an unknown person.

Naruto quickly grabbed a piece of paper and wrote his earlier questions on it. He showed the paper to that man.

No reaction. That man didn't even look at the paper.

Naruto flipped the paper in front of his red eyes.

Still no reaction.

_Is he blind? No wonder he didn't dodge the Frisbee!_

_How can I explain this to him?_

Naruto looked at the man clenched hands. He took one of them and unclenched it.

"Hey!" the black-haired man started to protest.

Quickly, Naruto wrote on the man's palm using his finger.

# I'm sorry.#

"I'm sorry?" the red-eyed man tried to translate.

#There was a flying Frisbee came towards your head. I was just trying to help.#

"Free bee?"

#No. Frisbee.#

"Hn. Thank you."

Naruto let go of the hand. He never saw this man before. Maybe he was new here. Really, he couldn't tell that this man was blind. His red eyes, albeit a bit creepy, looked like normal eyes. Furthermore, there was no cane nearby. Naruto had no idea how he could have got here alone without any help.

"Here, Sasuke. Your drink. After this, I'm taking you back to your house."

"Hn," was the only reply from the man named Sasuke.

Naruto was gaping, pointing his finger at the newcomer.

_Kakashi-sensei?!_

\What are you doing here?\ He quickly made the hand gestures.

"Ahhh….Naruto. You are here too. So, you two have met, huh?"

Kakashi ruffled Sasuke's hair.

"F-- off, Kakashi." Kakashi just chuckled at Sasuke's rude remark.

"Ahh…you see, he's not really a cheerful type. But please get well along with him, ok?"

With his hands, Kakashi made some signals,

\He's lonely.\

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A short prologue. Kinda hurry too. A new try for me.


	2. I Don't Need Any of That

Disclaimer: Naruto and the characters in it are not mine. This story does not have anything to do with any real person. Any similarities are purely coincidental. I apologize if somebody out there gets hurt from this story. I never intend to do any harm.

Warning: This is a yaoi/shounen-ai of SasuNaru kind. This is also an alternate universe setting for the Naruto manga series. I think I have to mention here; this is a serious story/fic. This is the serious side of me. This story will touch a lot on people emotion and how people come to accept with the term of life. I don't create this story for amusement of others but to write down an almost real life story I can come out with. Anyway, enjoy.

**Chapter 1:**** I Don't Need Your Attitude, I Already Have My Own**

The front door shut with a loud bang. Jiraiya who was in the kitchen at the moment rushed to the front door to check. There were reports of theft in the neighbourhood last week so he'd better take precaution. He was relief to see it was only Naruto – he must had had just came back from uni.

With the way Naruto violently shut the door, Jiraiya figured there was something that bothering the kid. The always smiling blond was fuming at the moment: his hands clenched and he was gritting his teeth. Not to mention, his face was bright red from anger.

Jiraiya parental instinct started to kick in. Was the boy being bullied again? When Naruto was younger, he always came home with bruises all over his body and face. Kids in the neighbourhood 'liked' him too much and couldn't leave him alone. They always teased him about his disability and his lack of parental figures. And Naruto personality didn't help much too. His hot-blooded temper and dumb decision always ended up with him fighting the kids.

But really, kids could be so cruel sometime. That didn't stop them from harassing Naruto, especially in the first few years Naruto lost his hearing. In his first year of losing his hearing, Naruto was still motivated to talk even though he wasn't able to hear his own words; just like before the accident. However, since he couldn't hear what he was saying, the words came out weird and the kids were being insensitive and teased him about it.

Even though Naruto had tried his hardest to ignore them most of the time, still, the teasing – over the years – finally got to him. Slowly, he began to stop talking. It was hard for Jiraiya to handle Naruto at that stage because he refused to speak and there was no other way to communicate with Naruto. Jiraiya had realised at that point of time, he should send Naruto to a special school to get Naruto to learn sign language but the blond kid was being stubborn. He refused to be treated differently from others. He still hadn't fully accept that he was deaf.

Without a way to communicate and feeling that nobody could understand him, he became a bitter kid and always hid himself in his room. He was either sleeping or reading or sketching something in his sketch book. Because of his frequent absents, he was expelled from school – this had made Jiraiya felt so angry at Naruto. He scolded the kid and they got into a fight which in turn had made Naruto ran from home.

It took Jiraiya a whole day to realize that Naruto went missing. Frantically searching him everywhere, Jiraiya had realized most of Naruto's belonging also went missing. That time, he felt that half of his life was gone. His grandson ran away from him! And he was deaf and naïve and cute and—and… The nine-years-old boy could have been kidnapped by some evil guys and they could probably sold him somewhere for money!

Jiraiya world was spinning madly. How should he answer to his deceased adopted-son in heaven if something happened to Naruto? After Naruto parents died – Uzumaki Kushina and Namikaze Minato – he took Naruto under his custody and promised Minato he would take a good care of Naruto. Already, since Naruto was a small child he had loved that kid dearly. Jiraya didn't have any offspring of his own, so Naruto was all that he had.

Naruto had been missing for five days now. Jiraiya was considering reporting Naruto missing to the police station after all but decided against it in the end. Truth to be told, reporting Naruto as a missing person endangered Naruto's life more than the fact that he was missing. There was a secret that his adopted son carried to his grave that made some people wanted to hurt Naruto for it. If missing Naruto was made public, those people might know their where about sooner than he wanted them to be.

Thank God, finally one evening, there was someone at his front door, ringing the door bell. At the moment, Jiraiya was waiting patiently near the home phone just in case someone had decided to call for a ransom. He had almost decided to ignore the door because he presumed that that must be his neighbours – they came to show sympathy.

However, when he finally opened the door, the person standing in front of the door made him felt the world burden on his shoulder had been lifted. There, standing guiltily while clutching the hand of an equally guilty looking man was Naruto. Quickly, Jiraiya picked Naruto up and hugged him tightly.

Ahh… his grandson was back. That piece of information was enough to soothe his maddening world. Naruto was crying – he must had thought that Jiraiya was angry at him for leaving without telling because he kept saying 'sorry, sorry' in that weird voice of his. Jiraiya patted his back soothingly and tenderly kissed the boy head as a sign he was not angry and Naruto cooled down a bit.

A movement.

Then, Jiraiya noticed the man who was still standing at the door. He gestured for the man to come in and invited him to sit on the sofa. Naruto was hiccupping in his hold but Jiraiya ignored the kid for the moment to give his attention to the young man sitting in front of him.

"Ah…thank you for bringing him back. You don't know how relief I am to see him alive and breathing and healthy like this. I've been searching for him for days now. I owe you a lot for this." Jiraiya said politely, he was still patting Naruto's back; that kid was beginning to doze off, probably tired from the crying and the stress.

"Aaaa…no problem at all, sir." The nice young man said with a blush on his scarred face.

"Don't be so polite. You deserve my gratitude. I should give you a reward. My grandson must have caused you a lot of trouble. By the way, how did you find him? I've been all over the town but couldn't find him anywhere." Jiraiya hugged Naruto tightly and kissed his head again. Oh, how he desperately searched for Naruto all over the town: the ramen shop, the arcade, shopping complex, the school, his bullies' house and whatever place he thought Naruto had might be.

"I found him wandering around at the bus station. He looked lost so I approached him. Turned out that he can't communicate with other people," the young man blushed again at this point, "and luckily I am familiar with that kind of situation."

"Familiar? What do you mean by that?" Jiraiya sounded suspicious.

"Err… I am a teacher. I am a teacher in Special Education."

At Jiraiya frown, the young man continued,

"My students use different language to communicate hmm…let see for example they use sign language. And that boy there is just like my students when they have just started learning the language."

_Ohh, that's why when he's talking he__'s kinda moves his hands in a weird way._

"So, you are a teacher, eh. Ohh, sorry I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Jiraiya. This kid grandfather, Uzumaki-"

"Naruto. Yes, I know. He told me." The young man finished Jiraiya's sentence for him.

"He told you, eh? He must like you. He doesn't talk much nowadays if at all." Jiraiya face was sad when he said that.

"So, what happened then? You saw him at the bus station and…"

"Oh….err….I asked him where he wanted to go and where his home is. He didn't want to tell me anything so I brought him to my house. It was already late at that time and it would have been dangerous to leave him there. I think he must have had trust me because he agreed to come with me."

The young man touched his nose for a moment out of nervousness and continued,

"I let him stayed at my house because he didn't want to go home. He refused to tell me where his house is. But you see, since I'm working during the day, I brought him to my workplace. I mean the school."

"You brought him to school? Really? He didn't want to go school anymore that's why I we fought him at the first place."

The young man blushed again and laughed awkwardly.

"You see, I kinda made a deal with him. If he didn't come with me to my workplace where I can keep an eye on him, I would bring him to the police. For some reason, he was afraid to go to police station, so he agreed."

Jiraiya didn't give any explanation at the questioning remark, so the young man continued,

"I think he got comfortable after awhile, being with the same kids that share his disability - made him opened up a bit. And few days later he told me his address and asked me to bring him home. He said he missed his 'jiji'."

Jiraiya gave him an appreciative smile. This guy was too good to be true. He needed help and there he was, the saviour.

"I can't thank you enough. If I can do anything Mr.."

"Umino. Umino Iruka."

"Mr Umino."

"No, no. Iruka is fine." Iruka gave a polite smile in return.

"Err..Iruka-kun. Do you think he wants to keep going to your school? I tried to enrol him once in the special school but he refused. But by the way you said it, he likes to go there."

"Let's ask him when he wakes up."

"Then, would you like to stay for dinner?"

--ooo--

From there, Naruto learned sign language and later learned to read lips. It was easier that Naruto went to school where Iruka was teaching. There was something that made him trusted Iruka and felt comfortable with Iruka presence. Maybe the facts that they were in some way, similar to each other: both were orphans and Iruka's ability to speak in Naruto's language. Iruka was also an expert in handling a child like Naruto. The fact that he looked at Naruto as a brother also made their bond closer than the teacher-student relationship.

Since Iruka taught elementary school children, when it was time for Naruto to go to high school, Naruto stopped going to the Special School anymore. He attended a normal high school near his house and later graduated. For him, even though he couldn't hear like anybody else, he didn't want to be treated any different from normal people. That was why he had decided to go to normal school. With his lips reading skill, he had managed to get through high school though it was not as great as he had hoped it would be. A short while after that, he was accepted to University of Fire.

Because Jiraiya didn't want Naruto to live in a hostel or lived by himself, they moved to a new house near to the university so that Naruto could commute from the house to uni by walking. Naruto was furious at first – Jiraiya was so overprotecting – for treating him like a child but had relented after some time. The ultimatum that Jiraiya had gave him didn't allow him to object Jiraiya decision: either he agreed or he couldn't go at all.

While for Jiraiya, keeping an eye on Naruto that closely, he had his own reason.

--ooo--

"What happened, Naruto?"

Naruto was a bit shocked when Jiraiya touched his shoulder. He didn't notice Jiraiya was nearby because he was so occupied by his emotion at that moment.

"What happened, Naruto?" Jiraiya asked again when he realized Naruto didn't 'hear' him the first time.

"Your cloth is wet and has stains on them. Did somebody bully you again?" Jiraiya was worried. He knew Naruto didn't like his worrying over him like this, but he couldn't help it – this kid always got himself into trouble someway or the other.

\Jiji. I'm not a kid anymore, ok? Nobody is bullying me. It's just this stupid emo guy threw his drinks at me./

Jiraiya made a sign for him to go on.

\I don't know what biting his ass for him to be so angry like that. That bastard. I was just trying to help. I swear!/ Naruto unconsciously trying to defend himself because from previous experiences, Jiji always accused him of wrong doing – and usually he was the wrong doer.

Naruto tugged at his wet shirt, uncomfortable. He could feel the wetness on his skin. Shit, this was his favourite shirt too.

\Kakashi-sensei just wanted to help him stand up and he threw his drink at us saying that he don't need anybody help./

Naruto gripped his hair in frustration when he had finished his 'speech'. He really didn't get that fella. When Kakashi arrived with his drink, he had been okay. They had a small chat – more like he and Kakashi-sensei had a chat - that guy just kept quite the whole time. Then it was time for them to go and Kakashi went to help him to stand and he became extremely mad. He threw his drink at Kakashi but got the wrong person – since he couldn't see, he threw it in Naruto's direction.

Naruto, with his hot-blooded temper, naturally became angry and retorted back with his own angry gestures.

\Hey, you ungrateful jerk. That was rude! Kakashi-sensei was only trying to help./

"Naruto, he can't see you. And I don't think he means to be rude." Kakashi-sensei said as a way to defend Sasuke's rude behaviour.

"F--k, Kakashi. I don't need you to cover up my acts for me."

\See, Kakashi-sensei? He's rude./

Naruto quickly grabbed Sasuke's arm and hold his hands. He started making signs using Sasuke's hand saying that he was angry with Sasuke's rude reaction.

"He doesn't understand sign language either, Naruto."

"Let me go, stupid! What are you trying to do?"

Naruto tried again. This time, he wrote something on Sasuke's arm. Getting enough touching for the day, Sasuke pushed Naruto roughly to the ground. He didn't like people touching him and this touchy-feely boy had touch him twice in a day. That was way over the quota for Sasuke standard.

"Hn. It was your fault for standing so near. Since you can _see_, why didn't you dodge it, stupid?" Sasuke let out the word 'see' with so much sarcasm. F—ck all these people! They were just annoyance to him.

_Why this bastard…_Naruto was fuming.

What the hell was this fella problem? He was the one who had got angry for no reason, threw his drink at people and then called Naruto stupid for getting splashed? This guy must had serious emotional issue. Who died and made him the king of the world? Naruto wouldn't let he got away with this so easily.

Naruto was so mad, he kicked Sasuke's shin – hard - and ran away from the scene; he was not afraid, he just didn't want to complicate things. From the corner of his eyes, he could see that stuck-up jerk fell from the kick. He hoped he would never had to see that stuck-up bastard again.

--000--

I never thought I will enjoy writing this story immensely. But look! I finished it in less time than I thought I would. I hope to make this story an epic one. I have to make a lot of research to write this – reminds me of my final year thesis. Not really difficult but got a lot of things to read.

Till next time.

**Chapter 2: ****Gone, gone and Never to Come Back Again**


	3. Gone and Never to Come Back Again

This chapter was beautifully edited by Obscure Omen.

Disclaimer: Naruto and the characters in it are not mine. This story does not have anything to do with any real person. Any similarities are purely coincidental. I apologize if somebody out there gets hurt from this story. I never intend to do any harm.

**Chapter 2: Gone, Gone and Never to Come Back Again**

Pak! Pak!

That was the sound of a palm hitting a table. Jiraiya turned to look at the table in question and saw Naruto there, drying his wet hair with a towel. He had just finished taking a bath.

/Jiji, I have finished. If you want to take a bath, I've left the water in the tub./

With a wave of his hand, Jiraiya dismissed Naruto's suggestion. He did want to take a bath, but not now. Maybe later. Now he needed to concentrate on his writing and enjoying his sake. Time like this—when he was blessed with ideas for his next installment of his Icha Icha novel series—was very rare; he needed to make good use of it. And drinking sake while writing just made the blessing all the more enjoyable.

Jiraiya heard Naruto plop himself onto the seat in front of Jiraiya—he didn't lift his head from his writing, since he was trying not to break his concentration. Being bluntly ignored by his grandpa, Naruto hit the table with his hand hard to get Jiraiya's attention. When his grandpa went into this state of concentration, it was really difficult to "talk" to him; his head would be all over the place, clouded with over-imaginative, perverted thoughts and drunkenness from the sake.

If Naruto didn't know better, he would have thought that Jiraiya needed to drink sake to write a good story. But Naruto knew better. Jiraiya—however his appearance suggested otherwise—was a good writer with or without the sake. The old pervert was just addicted to the stuff. He drank sake like it was water.

That made Naruto a little bit worried. Jiraiya was getting older, and his health was not as good as it used to be. Sometime, he couldn't even wake up because of a bad headache. Or so Jiraiya said. Naruto guessed that was just a lie to cover up his real illness, because Naruto had seen Jiraiya clutching his waist in pain a few times.

There was this one day when Jiraiya couldn't get up for three days straight, and he had to call Kakashi-sensei to help him bring his sick grandpa to the hospital. Even with Kakashi-sensei's help, Jiraiya refused to be taken to the hospital. He said that hospital was for sick people, and he was not sick. Naruto kicked up a storm at Jiraiya's childish reaction. He was worried sick for Jiraiya, but the old pervert didn't even want to admit that he was sick.

Because of that incident, Jiraiya stopped drinking sake for a few days. Only a few days though. He started drinking again after day four—he was addicted, after all, and bad habits are really hard to break. This really ticked Naruto off, but when Jiraya promised not to drink as much as he used to, Naruto relented a bit, but he still nagged Jiraiya about it all the time.

/Seriously Jiji, if you drink that much sake in one day, you're gonna die before you can turn bald./

"Stop nagging at me, brat. If I wanted someone to nag at me, I'd go get a wife."

Jiraiya stopped writing as he said this. He had lost his concentration the moment Naruto seated himself on the chair opposite him.

_Uh-huh. Here it comes._

According from his previous experiences, the way Naruto was looking at him now, with a disapproved frown marring his face, showed that there would be a nagging coming up. Really, Jiraiya was touched by Naruto's concern over his well-being and all, but that boy nagged too much (even without using his mouth!).

He was perfectly aware of why Naruto was so worried about him, and he also knew that the boy wanted him to go to hospital. Jiraiya was not ignorant; he knew he was sick. In fact, he knew he was in a critical condition; he had gone to see an old friend for a check-up, and she had confirmed that his cancer was already in a critical stage.

Just as he was not ignorant, he was not stupid, either. He had his own reasons for why he didn't want to receive treatment:

One, he was worried that Naruto would be worried about him.

Two, they didn't have enough money for his treatment, which would surely be expensive. Naruto was just a student—he didn't earn any money yet—and he was just a B-rate novelist.

Don't get him wrong: Jiraiya wasn't trying to be a hero here—selflessly sacrificing himself for the sake of others—but he figured that rather than wasting a lot of money for his treatment, it would be better to save it for Naruto's education. He was already old (almost 80 years old) and was in a critical stage of cancer—the chance of survival was not high; it would have just been a waste of money.

Truthfully, he regretted not being able to provide Naruto with luxuries or at least a better lifestyle. With him being a B-rate porn author, his income was not high—it was barely enough to cover their monthly expenses, his addiction to sake, and the small portion he kept aside for Naruto's education. They were lucky that Naruto's parent had kept a sum of money for Naruto; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to pay the university's tuition fee.

And, for all the reasons mentioned above, he couldn't tell Naruto about his illness. That child had enough burden of his own; he didn't need Jiraiya's. As long as Naruto could be happy with what he had in his life and get a good education, Jiraiya didn't mind dying. In Jiraiya's opinion, if he had left Naruto with no proper education, he would have not survived in this world, especially when some people wanted him "dead."

Naruto tapped Jiraiya's shoulder when he noticed that Jiraiya was so lost in his thoughts.

/So, why don't you get one?/ Naruto made a teasing face.

He was quite surprised when his jiji said that. Was his jiji planning to get married? Naruto wondered what kind of woman would be willing to marry his perverted jiji.

Jiraiya was confused. "Get what, brat?"

He didn't "hear" the first half of what Naruto had just "said." Sign language was tricky like that; once one diverted one's attention, one could miss what the other was trying to say.**(1)**

/W. I. F. E./ Naruto made the hand shapes of every letter carefully, in case Jiraiya missed it again.

"Che. I'm too old for that. Why don't _you_ get a wife?"

Jiraiya wriggled his eyebrows suggestively, quite entertained to see Naruto's flustered face—he was red in the face, and his ears were beginning to turn red, too. Truth be told, Naruto was a bit shy regarding the opposite sex; he didn't have any experience regarding females whatsoever. Jiraiya suspected that Naruto was not so eager to approach the opposite sex (even though he was already 20!) because he was conscious about his disability. He was sure that if Naruto was a bit braver, he would be popular amongst girls—he was cute, to say the least.

"You know, you're free to use my books as reference. Free of charge." Jiraiya was still teasing.

From embarrassment, Naruto's face had turned into the epitome of pure horror. That old pervert did not just suggest that.

/Gah, you ero-jiji! Don't make me sick! That's disgusting!/

Jiraiya laughed loudly at Naruto's reaction—that boy really knew how to make such funny and cute faces like that—so loudly that the laughing turned into coughing. It was a very heavy cough; Naruto had to rub Jiraiya's back to soothe it.

And then, there was blood.

Jiraiya was coughing up blood—a lot—and fainted a few moments later. Naruto shook Jiraiya's still body frantically. No response. Naruto checked Jiraiya's pulse, but, since he was in such shock, he wasn't able to find it. Thinking that Jiraiya was already dead, Naruto let out a silent scream.

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As soon as he got the urgent message from Naruto, Kakashi headed immediately to the hospital. This was the second time Naruto had called him for help regarding Jiraiya's health. It was not a strange thing for Naruto to do that. Kakashi was Naruto's private tutor at the university—it was his responsibility to look after Naruto's well-being **(2). **Furthermore, Naruto was not a stranger to him: Naruto was his deceased mentor's son.

Naruto's father—Minato—and he went way back. When he was still at the university, Kakashi took Archaeology as his major. At that time, Naruto's father was still alive, and he was quite a respected archaeologist. Since Kakashi was a brilliant student, he was accepted as Minato's apprentice—along with two other students—for his final project in his last year in Uni. It was really a golden opportunity for an archaeology major like him. Minato was rumoured to have an amazing find in his research, and Kakashi couldn't help but be excited at the prospect of how much he could learn from him.

The four of them—Minato, Kakashi, Obito, and Rin—had travelled a lot. Naturally, Minato almost never was at home. So, to make up to it, he always wrote letters home, especially to his son, Naruto. Every time he received a letter from home, his face would light up as if he had found a chest full of gold. Kakashi never thought an old man could smile so sweetly like that. The only thing he didn't really like was when Minato became cheerful like that: He would speak non-stop about how adorable his son was.

His students—willingly or not—had to listen to him going on and on about his son. Even though they never met Naruto in person, Minato's tales about his son were enough to make them felt like they knew this Naruto boy by heart. To Kakashi, who didn't have any siblings, he felt like Naruto was his little brother, since he already thought of Minato as his uncle (or big brother). Kakashi was also convinced that the other two also felt the same way.

The four of them were like a family, with Minato as the father figure; being together for so long did that to people. Even after they graduated from Uni, they still continued the project together.

Unfortunately, a tragedy happened. In one of their expeditions, Obito died from sand-slide triggered by their digging. Kakashi felt really guilty because Obito died from saving him. He wanted to quit at first, but Minato didn't allow it. So they continued with the research. Perhaps Minato also felt guilty, because he never accepted any new apprentices after that. He'd rather continue the project with fewer people than have a stranger in the "family."

Then, October 10th came.

Minato had promised his son that he would be home for his ninth birthday. So he went back home to celebrate Naruto's birthday. The night of Naruto's birthday, there was an accident. Another member of their little family was gone. The project was called off, which left Kakashi and Rin hanging in the air. Rin decided to quit completely after a while and vanished from the surface of the earth without a trace.

Not long after, Kakashi also quit. He took a second degree in Mathematics and Statistics –a completely different field from archaeology, for he didn't want to have anything to do with archaeology anymore. For a genius like Kakashi, such thing was not a problem. To prove this, he passed the test for his degree with flying colours and later decided to become a lecturer.

Because of Kakashi's attachment to Minato, he even thought of adopting little Naruto when he first heard about Minato's death. He knew that, apart from his parents, Naruto didn't have any more relatives (that Kakashi knew of). After all, he already thought of Naruto as his little brother. Still, he was not a suitable candidate: He had just graduated and didn't have the stable finances to support a child.

Fortunately, someone stepped up. It was Jiraiya. Kakashi recalled Minato telling them about his adopted father, but, because Jiraiya was missing for so long, he didn't think he would come to take the responsibility. Still, he came and took Naruto into his care. They lived in Naruto's family home together, and Kakashi moved on with his life.

It was not until Naruto came to the University of Fire that Kakashi met the boy again. Due to Jiraiya's request, Naruto was put under his care; that was how he became Naruto's personal tutor for the whole three years he was in Uni. Coincidentally, Kakashi knew sign language. Well, to be honest, he learned it for Naruto. He knew back then that because of the accident, Naruto had become deaf, and he thought to himself, if he wanted to talk to the child (that he had come to love), he needed to learn sign language.

But Kakashi couldn't deny that Minato's death (and Obito's) left a huge impact on him, especially when he noticed that Naruto had the same appearance as his father—Kakashi was reminded of the people that he had lost; he couldn't bring himself to visit the grandfather-grandchild pair. But he believed that one day he would meet that boy again, so he didn't mind learning the sign language.

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"Naruto, are you okay?"

Kakashi quickly went to where Naruto was sitting once he spotted him sitting on a plastic chair outside of the patient room.

Naruto didn't notice Kakashi's presence until Kakashi was crouching in front of him and their faces were level. Kakashi was about to repeat his question but stopped himself because the answer was obvious. Of course he was not okay. Naruto's face was full of agony. He was crying, and his nose was red from wiping it too much.

And his eyes. Oh God, his eyes. His eyes were so sad and looked like they had lost their light.

Kakashi took a seat beside Naruto and hugged his shoulders to show his support. He really badly wanted to ask about Jiraiya's condition, but he doubted that Naruto knew the answers. So they just waited in silence.

A doctor came out from the room. As fast as he could, Naruto ran to said doctor. He quickly made signs with his hands to ask about Jiraiya. The doctor looked at him with pity in his eyes. Poor guy. Jiraiya's condition was pretty bad, but he didn't know how to tell this blond man, who was obviously the old man's relative. Luckily, Kakashi was there.

"How was he, doctor?" Kakashi had to interrupt; Naruto was frantically pulling the doctor's coat.

"We have done what we can. The good news is, he is stable now. But his cancer was really severe. We can suggest a liver-transfer surgery, **(3) **but we have to discuss that. The patient doesn't want the surgery."

Kakashi looked at Naruto for a reaction; he himself was surprised to hear about Jiraiya's condition. And Naruto's reaction? He was as still as a rock and as pale as a sheet. Guess that Jiraiya also didn't tell him anything. Kakashi touched him gently on the shoulder to get his attention.

/What am I supposed to do, Kakashi-sensei?/ was all Naruto said before he slumped to the floor and cried his eyes out.

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The next few days, Naruto spent his time alternating between classes and visiting his grandfather. Sometimes they would get into a fight, because Jiraiya refused surgery and Naruto was adamant in persuading him to have it. He didn't care how much the surgery would cost—he would pay for it. He had money that his parents and Jiraiya saved for his education. They could use that money. He could always earn more money, but Jiraiya's life couldn't be replaced.

But Jiraiya was stubborn. He didn't want to be a burden to Naruto.

Unfortunately, on the fourth day, he had another attack. This time, Naruto took command and signed the surgery contract (Naruto was Jiraiya's next kin). Jiraiya was operated on the very same night.

The operation was a success. Jiraiya came out alive with a new liver. Naruto was so happy—but not for long.

Someone poisoned Jiraiya's I.V. drip with something that made him unable to breath. He died in his sleep.

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It had been two weeks since Jiraiya died, and Naruto didn't come to class once. Kakashi visited him almost every day to check on him. He was getting better day by day, but his spirit was still low. Fortunately, Kakashi succeeded in applying a two-week absent from Uni for Naruto—if he hadn't, he wouldn't have enough credits to move on to next year.

On his twelfth visit, Kakashi was hit by unexpected news.

/I want to quit school./

Kakashi was left speechless by the news. Why was it so sudden? Had something happened?

/I don't have the money to go to college. Maybe I'll work first and continue my studies later./

/No, you can't do that. You're already a third-year student; just another year and you'll be finished./ Kakashi used sign language to communicate; he felt the need to do so.

/I—I can't. I don't have the money. I don't want to sell the house. I don't have anywhere else to live./

/You can sell the house, and you can stay with me. Or I can sponsor you. You don't have to—/

Naruto caught Kakashi's hand to cut him off. /Look, Kakashi-sensei. I don't need your pity. I can manage myself on my own. I already have a part-time job at the pet shop down the street./

/Hey, don't let your pride get the better of you. Think about—/

/No! This is my future, too. I don't want to depend on somebody else. Don't you get it, sensei? I want to prove to myself that I can live without help./

Naruto's eyes were full of determination, just like Minato's when he was dead serious about things. When he got like that, nothing could change his mind.

/I hope you think through this carefully, Naruto. Don't jeopardize your life because of mundane things like proving yourself./

Kakashi touched Naruto's head affectionately.

/I'll come back in a few days time. Think on what I said carefully, okay?/

Naruto nodded. He was pretty sure he wouldn't change his mind even if he did think it over. He didn't want to be a burden to Kakashi like he was to Jiraiya. His jiji died mostly because of him; that old man suffered silently because he didn't want to make Naruto worried. Naruto didn't want the same thing to happen to anyone else. He had had enough of being someone else's burden.

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True to his word, Kakashi came to visit him at his part-time job. Kiba, the pet shop owner's son, was teaching Naruto to groom a dog properly when Kakashi stepped into the shop.

/What time does your shift end? I want to take you out for ramen./

Kakashi smiled warmly. He knew Naruto liked Ichiraku's ramen, a shop near his house.

/Really?/ Naruto looked at his watch. /Another 30 minutes./

/Okay, I'll wait./

Thirty-five minutes later, they were at Ichiraku's. Naruto looked a bit cheerful inhaling his favourite ramen.

/Have you think about what I said the other day?/

/Yeah. I'm really thankful for your offer, but no./

/I knew you'd say that. So I came to offer you a job./ Naruto frowned in confusion, and Kakashi continued, /Yeah, a job. This way you can go to Uni and have a place to live./

/How so?/

/Well, since you refused my offer, you still have to sell your house to pay for the tuition fee. But don't worry: This job will provide you with food, accommodation, clothes—if you want—and all basic things that you need./

/Huh. What kind of job is this? This sounds suspicious. Do you plan to sell me off, Kakashi-sensei?/ Naruto was pouting.

Kakashi laughed heartily. /No. If I did plan to, I'm sure nobody would want to buy you./

Naruto huffed, not sure whether he was just being insulted or not.

/I want you to take care of my "pet."/

/Your pet?/

/Yes, my "pet." But my "pet" doesn't live with me, so it's kinda difficult to look after him./

/But isn't the pay is too high for taking care of a pet?/ Naruto was getting more suspicious.

Kakashi grinned. He had to make Naruto agree to do this; Naruto living alone was dangerous. He knew about the threats regarding Naruto. Heck, he was the only person left who knew about them. He had to protect this young man.

/Ohh… It's because taking care of him is not easy. I assure you. You have to make him food, talk to him, play with him… Hmm, what else… Ahh—just generally be friends with him./

/But, what if he doesn't like me? Where will I go?/

"Maa, maaa," Kakashi said.

/That's your challenge, Naruto-kun. You have to make him _like_ you. You will lose a lot here if you don't take this opportunity. You can't have seriously given up on school, right?/

Naruto frowned. Should he take up Kakashi's offer? The offer sounded nice, but he risked losing his house, but, honestly, that house was big for one person. If he sold that house, he could go back to school, and, from what Kakashi said, he would have a place to stay—for as long as he wanted, by the sound of it. That was a bonus; he didn't have to think about bills and such that came with owning a house.

Should he try?

Naruto took a peek at Kakashi. This man looked genuine to help him. So the offer couldn't be something terrible, right? Maybe he should give it a try. The world is one big gamble, anyway. No, not really. He just wanted to get his degree.

/Okay. I'll do it. When should I start?/

Kakashi grinned again. His plan worked.

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No Sasuke, eh? He will be in the next chapter. This chapter is more like an interlude.

Next chapter title:

**Chapter 3: The Man with a Pride Bigger than Everest**

(1) I want to stress here, according to _The Dummy's Guide to Sign Language_ (yes, I read that book for this story), sign language is not English. It's a totally different language makes up from four parts of "things." It says in the book that when someone is signing, it is important to give your whole attention to them (unless there is a Boeing about to land behind you) or you won't understand. Facial expressions are important in sign language, so you have to watch people's faces as well as their hands.

(2) I don't know if this is true in every university, but it is for mine. The private tutor is like your parent (sort of).

(3) I'm not a medic student, so if the medical conditions or terms are wrong, just ignore them. Ok?


	4. The Man with a Pride Bigger Than Everest

Edited by Obscure Omen.

Disclaimer: Naruto and the characters in it are not mine. This story does not have anything to do with any real person. Any similarities are purely coincidental. I apologize if somebody out there gets hurt from this story. I never intended to cause any harm.

**Chapter 3: The**** Man with a Pride Bigger than Mt. Everest**

Naruto was stealing side glances at Kakashi, who was sitting beside him, driving a white Ford. The conversation at Ichiraku's ten minutes ago and the agreement that they managed to achieve from it had began to loose their convincing traits the more Naruto thought about it. Heck, he was not even sure he should be in this car, since the grey-haired man had only one good eye. Granted, he had never learned how to drive a car himself, so he didn't really know for sure, but wasn't it supposed to be dangerous driving with one of your eyes closed?

That—and the work contract that Kakashi had insisted he sign just now—made him a little bit uncomfortable. He considered interrupting Kakashi's driving to tell him that maybe he didn't want to take the job after all and asking if he could please stop the car so that he could get off. He was about to tap Kakashi's shoulder when Kakashi took a sharp turn that made Naruto bang his head on the window; Kakashi just narrowly missed a motorbike.

So, Naruto decided to keep quiet. He better let Kakashi concentrate on the driving or else both of them might reach their destination faster—in spirit form. Kakashi was already a reckless driver, even without him intervening. How he was able to obtain his driving license was something that Naruto didn't want to know; he'd risk losing his innocence if he tried to find out.

All he had to do was wait. When they reached their destination, he'd tell Kakashi the doubts that he had, doubts that had begun to form the second he stepped foot in the car. Really, he shouldn't be so ready to agree with Kakashi's suggestions. He should've asked more about the details. For all that he knew, the pet could be a goanna **(1)**. Well, who knew? Kakashi always pegged him as a person who enjoyed strange hobbies, like keeping a goanna for example.

Generally, Naruto didn't have anything against goannas, but he would be happier if the pet that Kakashi had was a cat, or a rabbit, or something cute like that. A fox would do, too. He loved to play with active animals; he could chase them around and cuddle with them later. But a goanna? All it would do is just sit and look at people with its 360-degree eyes. That would be super boring.

He really hoped Kakashi's pet was not a goanna.

Naruto was still lost in his musings of how to feed a goanna and not get a slashed by its tail when he noticed that the car had stopped. He looked at Kakashi in askance; was this his pet's house? And if the answer was yes, how big could the pet be—because the house was pretty damn big to Naruto! It was painted white all over and surrounded by green grass, kept tidy and short by a professional gardener, Naruto was sure of it. And if he peeked a little to his left, he could see a small, Japenese garden, complete with a small fountain, a koi pond, and a small wooden bridge. They gave the house a sense of traditionalism. He would have never had thought a house such as this existed in the middle of Konoha Metropolitan City. In the countryside, maybe, but not in the city.

And this kind of house must be owned by a family of a prominent name in Fire country; not necessarily super-wealthy, but still hold a standing in high society. Just look at the symbol on the brick gate—that must be the family's symbol. What kind of family still had family's symbol in this modern era? As far as Naruto was concerned, that was only practical during feudal Japan.

_The kind of family with an influential name, of course._

Slowly, Naruto turned to look at Kakashi, astonished. Oh, he didn't know that Kakashi was in this kind of family. Who would have thought a pervert like him came from a very influential family? This had to be some kind of mistake. Naruto refused to believe it; Naruto just had to ask—there had to be some kind of explanation for this.

He hit the car's roof with his hand to gain Kakashi's attention.

/Kakashi-sensei, I didn't know that you are rich./ He flailed his arms around to indicate the house's size. /You should treat me more to ramen, you stingy-pot!/

Kakashi snorted at the accusation of being rich and stingy.

/Maa, Naruto-kun. I'm not rich. This is not my house. I've told you, this is my pet's house./

/Same difference. If your pet is rich, you're rich too./ Naruto pouted, playing along with Kakashi's lie, a bit cross that Kakashi preferred lying to him than admitting the truth. Really, what kind of pet had its own house this big? Did Kakashi think he would believe that?

"You don't believe me, do you?" Kakashi gave his own mock-pout at Naruto's pouting face. "Then come. I'll show you. I want you to meet my 'pet.'"

They stepped to the front door together. After a few seconds of fishing the house's keys from his pocket, Kakashi managed to open the front door. Kakashi invited Naruto to step in and asked him to take off his shoes.

"You can use the house slippers there." He pointed at an array of house slippers near the shoe rack.

Naruto dutifully took off his shoes and slipped on the slippers. Done with that, he peeked inside. One peek and all thoughts of a goanna vanished. If he thought the outside was great, the inside interior was marvellous. Almost all of the items in the living room (Naruto assumed it was a living room) were white: The vases, sofas, the furniture, windows, curtains, carpet, and even the home phone was white. And, because almost all of the items were white, the black grand piano situated near the floor-to-ceiling glass window looked magnificent.

/Come, I'll show you around./

Kakashi's "words" interrupted his little observation, but he followed Kakashi nevertheless. Kakashi brought them to the living room; they were standing in the middle of it at the moment.

/This is the living room/ Kakashi explained. _Yeah, I guessed that._ Naruto nodded.

From the entrance, he wasn't able to see the full extent of the room. Now that he was in the middle of the room, he could see there were more of the floor-to-ceiling glass windows and more white vases and white furniture. Naruto could imagine, on sunny days, that this room would be so bright thanks to the sunlight shining through the big windows. One could observe the garden outside from here through the glass windows, too. It was really a nice living room. He didn't mind spending hours in here reading or taking a nap.

Kakashi touched his shoulder as a sign for them to move on. This time, Kakashi led him to an area that looked like a kitchen, not far away from the living room. Naruto looked at Kakashi to confirm that this was indeed a kitchen. It was too clean! The hot-spot stove was sparkling clean as well as the sink, the fridge, and the table-top. Ingredient bottles were lined up carefully in the open cabinet; they looked custom-made and exclusive. But then again, everything in the kitchen looked exclusive. For a kitchen, this area was impressive.

Beside the kitchen, there was the dinner table with five seats surrounding it. Every seat was carved with the family's symbol at the back. While the table didn't have any carvings, it was made from a solid, heavy wood, which looked amazing with the shining finish. It gave this impression that it could last at least a hundred years. Naruto bet that those things were antique.

From where he stood near the dinner table, he could see a large staircase that surely led to the second floor. _The bedrooms must be upstairs._

Kakashi didn't have any explanations, even though he noticed Naruto was studying the staircase in awe; Kakashi gave him a knowing look instead. The first time he saw the staircase, he himself was impressed with the design: The handrails were spiral in shape and made up the image of a phoenix, while the stairs were a heavy wood that glittered in the light.

/We'll go upstairs after this. I want to show you just one more room downstairs./

Kakashi brought Naruto past the staircase and into a room. According to Kakashi, it was a reading room, but it looked like a library to Naruto; there were so many books! There was also a work table, settee, and laptop. _Just like a study room._

But the reading room looked like it hadn't been used for quite some time: Dust coated the table, and the settee's cover looked untouched. _Maybe the owner hates reading._

They were not there long, for there was not much to see. They left the room, and this time Kakashi led him upstairs into a room that made Naruto change his mind completely; he didn't mind taking the job even if Kakashi's pet was a goanna. Heck, even if it was a lion, he would take the job.

It was a bathroom! With a big Jacuzzi tub, no less. Naruto was a sucker for a good, nice soak at the end of a tiring day, and this Jacuzzi tub looked promising. In his excitement, Naruto gave Kakashi a thumb up and rushed to the big glass window near the tub. He looked down from there, and to his amazement, he could see the house's backyard.

_This house has a river! __Wow, it's almost look like a small forest down there, all green and peaceful. This is awesome!_

_Eh, what's that?_

Naruto frowned for a second. He thought he saw black hair just now. Was that a person? Or Kakashi's pet? That reminded him: He hadn't met the pet yet.

/Kakashi-sensei. I want to meet your pet. After all, the point is to take care of the pet, not the house./

Kakashi gave Naruto a guilty grin; he touched his hair nervously.

/Aaaa, yes, you're right, Naruto-kun. Let's go meet him. I think he's outside. But are you sure you want to meet him now? I haven't finish showing you the whole house. There is a lot more to see./ Kakashi tried to stall time. For some reason, he knew Naruto would not like his "pet" very much.

/Nah, it's okay. I can explore the house later. It's not a goanna, is it? Please tell me it's not a goanna./

Kakashi raised a confused brow. _What is this kid talking about?_ He decided to ignore it.

They climbed down the stair and headed to the back of the house. There were more rooms along the way, but Kakashi didn't stop to explain. When they finally reached the back door, Naruto noted that it was not a door at all. In fact, the door to the backyard was a big sliding-glass door that allowed people from the inside to have an open view of the outside.

Just outside of the house, facing the river, there were tables and chairs. And sitting at one of the chairs was that guy named Sasuke that Naruto had the un-fortune of meeting the other day. He just sat there, as if looking at the peaceful scene in front of him, doing nothing with his eyes closed. If Naruto didn't know better, he would have thought that the Sasuke-guy was sleeping.

"What are you doing here, Kakashi? I told you, I don't need your help. Get lost!" Sasuke said without looking at Kakashi. He knew Kakashi was there because he heard footsteps, and only Kakashi had a house key other than him. Also, Kakashi seemed to make it his business to visit Sasuke every two days; he must have thought that Sasuke needed help to manage a day-to-day routine and felt pity towards him. F-- him! Sasuke didn't need help and surely didn't need anyone's pity.

Naruto knew that Sasuke had said something even though he couldn't see his mouth, because Kakashi replied back to him. _How does he know we are here?_

"Maa, maa, Sasuke. That's no way to treat your guests. Naruto-kun here was kind enough to visit you today," Kakashi lied through his teeth.

/Hey, Kakashi-sensei. What's going on? I sure as hell didn't come here to visit this jerk./

Kakashi grinned that guilty/nervous grin again.

/But you see, Naruto-kun, you did come here to visit him. He's my "pet."/

/Your what?! But he's not a goanna!/

/Goanna? What are you talking about, Naruto-kun? Nevermind. Well, haven't I told you that Sasuke-kun here is my only relative left? I'm his guardian. Kind of. Owner, guardian, same difference, right?/

/No. Those two terms are totally different./

/Says you. Anyway, he's your responsibility from now on. The contract, remember?/

/No way! You tricked me, you liar! I don't want to be friendly with him!/

/Maa, maa, Naruto. It's not my fault if—/

"Kakashi, who are you with?" Sasuke finally asked when he realized Kakashi was silent for a long while.

Kakashi ignored him.

/—you were being careless and got tricked. A contract is still a contract./

Kakashi was grinning, but his body language indicated that he was serious. He was silently challenging Naruto to defy the contract, and Naruto knew that if he was brave enough to pull out from the contract, Kakashi would cheerfully carry out the penalty.

/I'm gonna kill you after this is over./ Naruto had no choice. The penalty would be severe; Kakashi was a bastard to blackmail him like this.

/Ahh, I knew you would agree with me, Naruto-kun. Don't worry—/

Bang!! A chair crashed to the floor. They looked at Sasuke, who was now standing angrily; apparently he was the one who had pushed the chair down violently.

"Damnit, Kakashi!! I asked you something, didn't I?! Who the hell is with you?! Have you gone deaf?! Answer me!!"

_Uh-oh. He's angry.__ Again._

Kakashi let out a tired sigh. Sasuke had been like this since _that_ happened. His temper would flare at a slightest mistake or discomfort. He had tried being understanding and patient, but for how long could he keep it up? Sasuke's behaviour really was grating on his nerves. One of these days, he would explode, so before that could happen, he had to find a new alternative.

And Naruto was a good choice. If it was Naruto, Kakashi sure he could handle Sasuke; they both had matching tempers. Sure, they would fight and maybe hurt each other if they lived together, but at least…

_Yeah, at least what, Kakashi?_

At least Naruto would understand. He must. He would understand Sasuke's behaviour because he had been through it once himself. Sasuke was somehow similar to Naruto. They both had _lost_ an ability, and they both were lonely people.

So, he had to understand—Kakashi really, really hoped so. If he didn't...

No, he couldn't be so pessimistic. This just had to work—there was no other way.

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#Hey, you jerk!# Naruto had caught Sasuke's arm and was writing something on it.

#Why are you so rude? What's your problem, really?#

Sasuke eyes widened a little when he realized who the other person was. He was that guy who kicked him at the park the other day. Sasuke almost let out a small grin. He didn't expect he would be lucky enough to meet this nuisance again, but that didn't stop him from plotting revenge for when he wouldmeet him again.

And now was time for revenge. He tugged at the hand that was still holding his arm so that the man was forced to get near him. When he was sure the man before him was near enough, he kicked him hard—he was aiming at his shin, but wherever it hit, it was good enough.

Naruto crouched down from the pain at his shin. Damn, that was a powerful kick just now. His leg would sure be blue in several minutes. How dare this jerk kick him? Did he think Naruto would let it go just like that? He better think again.

Waiting for the pain to subside a little, Naruto stood up after a few minutes. He was ready to punch Sasuke's smirking face, but Kakashi stopped him; if not for Kakashi's bigger frame, he could have not blocked Naruto's attempt to attack Sasuke.

/That prick just kicked me, Kakashi-sensei! Let me punch that stupid face!/

/Naruto-kun, your job is to look after him, not fight him/ Kakashi warned sternly.

This looked bad. It had just been five minutes, and they were already fighting. The future didn't look so bright right now. If this were to continue, his plan would not work properly. He had to reason with Naruto (trying to reason with Sasuke would only make him angrier).

/Don't do anything stupid, Naruto-kun. You have to stick to the contract, and I mean it./

Kakashi didn't really mean to threaten Naruto, but drastic times require drastic measures.

/You're not being fair, Kakashi-sensei. He kicked me first!/

/Yeah, I know, but that does not mean you have to hit him, too, right? Remember your purpose here: he is to be your friend./

_F__riend my a--! _Naruto let out an indignant huff. _Never mind. I have plenty of time to exact my revenge._

Kakashi was a bit worried about Naruto's mischievous grin but ignored it in order to speak to Sasuke—he was already sitting back at his previous seat like he didn't just kick Naruto several minutes ago.

"Sasuke-kun," Kakashi began.

"What?"

"Naruto here is going to be your housemate from tomorrow on. Get along well with him, ok?" Kakashi tried to make his voice sound as cheerful as he could.

"'Housemate,' huh? Do you think I'm stupid? He's just another of those helpers, isn't he? How many times do I've to f--ing tell you, I don't need help. Get lost!!" The table was pushed to the floor with a loud crash. For a blind guy, Sasuke sure was strong.

­

_Uh-huh.__ He sure doesn't want me here._

Naruto grinned. What wonderful news that was. If Sasuke was so against him staying here, he _would_ stay just because _that_ would make Sasuke mad. Wahahahaha… and how he loved to make that jerk mad—served him right for being so rude. Although Naruto knew it would be hell to live with that jerk, he wasn't the only who would feel that way; he would make sure of that.

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(1) Goanna? Goanna is slightly different from iguana or chameleon. They are much larger and kinda look like crocodile sometimes. They are believed to have more than one life (like cats) – I know this because we (me and my dad) killed one but it came back to life the next day. And goanna –like my editor said – doesn't have 360 degrees eyes. But lets just pretend it have, ok?

I swear this story is getting harder to write. It's really hard to write a bad-mouthed Sasuke ('cause I don't swear), so if you found the swearing gets a little bit repetitive, pardon me—it's not my cup of tea.

Well, that's that, and I wanted to say that I love this story's readers better than my other story's. I'm aware that only a few read this story (I've the stat) but you guys seem different. A totally different audience—more mature or analytical maybe? Doesn't make sense, eh?

Well, just ignore it.

Before I forget, to **A Kitsune's Light**, I noticed you! I want to say thank you for your reviews, but you don't leave any emails for me to reply to. So here, thank you!

Next:

**Chapter 4: ****War of the Upstairs and Downstairs Regime**

ps: Hey dont you guys think formatting a bit off? I cant create space between paragraphs. The shift+enter keys didnt work too.


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